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Species Image Gallery (opens in a new window) |
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| THE GRAPEFERN FAMILY | |||||||||
| The grapefern family is a unique group of plants. Most of the grapeferns found in Saskatchewan are considered endangered or threatened. These plants have short rootstocks and often have a cluster of fleshy roots. The sterile and fertile blades have a common stalk. The common stalk is enlarged at the base and encloses the bud for the next year’s growth. The sterile blades are sessile or on stalks and can be simple to compound. The fertile blades are generally long stalks and may be branched or unbranched. The spore sacs are arranged in two rows on the fertile leaves. The spores are small and yellowish. | |||||||||
| STALKED MOONWORT | |||||||||
| LATIN NAME: Botrychium pedunculosum | |||||||||
| WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE? | |||||||||
| Stalked moonwort is a small fern. The common stalk has a reddish-brown stripe which may help to identify this species. The sterile blade has a stalk that is longer than the central axis of the blade. The blade is once pinnate, leathery, and dull green. The sterile blade has up to five pairs of ascending pinnae. The distance between the first and second pairs of pinnae is equal to or slightly greater than the distance between the second and third pairs. The fertile blades are twice to four times longer than the sterile blades and are once to three times pinnate. | |||||||||
| WHERE DOES IT GROW? | |||||||||
| Stalked moonwort grows in open pine or spruce woods on rotting wood litter. | |||||||||
| WHERE IS IT FOUND IN SASKATCHEWAN? | |||||||||
| This species is very limited in Saskatchewan and occurs only in the Cypress Upland and Mid-Boreal Lowland ecoregions. | |||||||||
| WHY IS IT RARE? | |||||||||
| Stalked moonwort is endangered because of extreme rarity in Saskatchewan and is almost always locally sparse. No immediate threats are known but are possible in the future. | |||||||||
| HOW TO IDENTIFY STALKED MOONWORT | |||||||||
| *Does the common stalk have a reddish-brown stripe? *Does the sterile blade have a long stalk? *Are the fertile blades two to four times longer than the sterile blades? *Did you find it in the Cypress Hills or east-central Saskatchewan? |
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| If you answered yes to all of these questions, you may have found stalked moonwort! | |||||||||
